The Parent Teacher Conference
by PrincessTadashi
Summary: Fred's stuck in a dead end teaching job trying to explain the importance of Shakespeare to high school students who couldn't care less. But when he meets the very attractive single dad of one of his most promising students, he suddenly takes a very different view of his parent teacher conferences. Fredashi (Fred/Tadashi) Teacher!Fred/Papa!Tadashi (Oneshot)


When Fred had graduated from college with an English degree, he'd wanted to go right into the field of writing. Unfortunately, as he soon found out, that was a very difficult field to get into, especially when you refused to let your father, who had all sorts of connections in high places, just "pave the way" for you and on his own no publishers seemed interested in his fantasy/sci-fi novel manuscripts to date. He'd also tried self publishing, but his latest book had barely sold one hundred copies after being out there for almost two full years, so the odds weren't looking good. He easily could have stayed at home and just lived off of his family's wealth, but Fred wasn't the type of person who could sit idly by and watch his life fly past him while doing nothing, plus he really didn't want to be forced to be dependent on his parents for his entire life. So, not sure what else to do, he turned to the same fate that many English majors faced-teaching language arts. At first Fred had thought it might be fun-he had fond memories of his own high school English teacher and the engaging conversations they'd had about everything from Shakespearean literature to the newest sci-fi graphic novels on the market. It was that man who had encouraged Fred to follow his dreams of becoming a writer, and the fanboy hoped that maybe he could be a source of inspiration to the next generation. Even if he couldn't be one of the literary greats, maybe he could be the one who helped a future Pulitzer Prize winner make their way to the top. Unfortunately, five years later, he'd discovered that most of his students couldn't care less about literature, classic or otherwise. He was actually pretty sure that some of them had never even cracked a book in their lives. So here he was, stuck in a dead end teaching job at the local high school and trying to convince himself that he wasn't becoming bitter after the third time of students vandalizing his car in the teachers' parking lot.

Tonight was going to be particularly arduous because he had parent-teacher conferences. Three hours of listening to parents yell at him, demanding that they explain why he had flunked their students who never even bothered to pick up a pencil. Whoopee. Thank goodness it was a Friday night so he could go home and numb the pain with a stiff drink-possibly several. He knew at least one or two of his coworkers would actually slip a drink before conferences as a sort of preemptive measure, but he still valued his job enough not to risk that.

As expected, the first five meetings with parents ranged from mediocre to downright torture. It was all he could do not to stare at the clock like so many of his students did, silently counting down the time until he could finally get out of here.

His last appointment was running late. He checks the time again just to make sure-it was five fifty. Mr. Hamada should have been here almost twenty minutes ago. Sighing, Fred decides that he was probably just ditching-and the guy wondered why his son, Hiro, was the kid who was constantly being sent to the principal's office for acting out and getting into fights. Albeit, Fred could understand some of that-the boy was apparently some sort of genius (he had to be considering he was a freshman in high school and only nine years old) and he could tell that Hiro was rather alienated from his peers because of that. He even suspected that there was some bullying going on, but unfortunately he hadn't caught anyone in the act yet and so there wasn't much he could do until he had solid proof. If Hiro was dealing with an absentee parent (his only parent, as far as he could tell, given there was no other spouse or partner listed on the teen's records), that only explained things even further.

Just as Fred was starting to pack up, thinking that waiting was a lost cause, suddenly the door to his classroom bursts open and a man comes hurrying in.

"Oh my gosh, I am _so_ sorry, I was scared you'd already left!" the stranger says, trying to catch his breath and get out an apology at the same time. "There was an emergency at work and I couldn't get away until now, if I'd had your number I would have called to let you know that I was running behind-"

Honestly, after about the first sentence, Fred wasn't even listening to the other man's explanation. He was just staring at the six feet of gorgeousness in front of him. He'd heard other male teachers making comments about enjoying their parent-teacher conferences with the hot single moms of some of their students. The fanboy had honestly never really been able to fully understand the draw of that-but, then again, he was gay (had been openly so for as long as he could remember) and there really weren't that many attractive dads who came to his conferences (and any of them that did were happily married, ergo the fact that they were actually coming to the conferences.) Now, though, he was doing his best not to gape and/or drool at the man in front of him. His exterior was old-school nerd-he seriously looked like someone who was purposefully dressing like a stereotypical college professor, complete with the sweater with complimentary elbow patches. But underneath the cardigan and the thick-rimmed glasses, he could see a well-toned chest and arms which almost reminded the teacher of a statue of some Roman god (these features only accentuated by the man's chiseled jaw.) Still, the man's floppy black hair, which looked like it could use a trim, his very scraggly attempt at either a beard or a goatee, and those warm brown eyes which Fred could have sworn he'd seen on a puppy once gave him a youthful air, despite the fact that he looked approximately thirty-close to Fred's own age, which was unusual for the parent of one of his students.

He hadn't even realized that the other man had stopped talking until he finally registered the fact that he was standing there, staring expectantly at him as if waiting for a reply.

"Oh, um-Yeah, no, it's totally fine, I didn't mind waiting!" Fred blurts out, hoping that it was the right response, and by the smile on the other man's face he gauges that it was.

"Thank goodness-I didn't want you to think that I'm one of those parents who don't care at all about important stuff in their kids' lives!" Mr. Hamada sighs in relief as he takes the seat across from Fred that was obviously meant for the parent to sit in. "I'm doing everything I can to stay as involved a possible in Hiro's life-heck, if he was old enough to be on the robotics team at this school, I'd definitely be coaching or at least volunteering there since he really wants to join! But sometimes the life of a college professor can have it's… unexpected moments."

"A professor!" Fred's eyes go wide with interest. "What do you teach?"

"Robotics over at SFIT," Tadashi answers with a slight smile. "That's where I went to college."

"Wow… I am seriously impressed, I was never any good with that math and science stuff, especially not when it came to applying it to real life," Fred admits, shaking his head slightly before adding, "So, should I call you 'Dr.' or 'Professor' Hamada?" He almost instantly cringes. Wow, horny much? He hadn't even intended it as a pickup line, but that's how it had come out and now he'd probably just totally freaked the other man out and ruined any chances he might have with him-which were probably already nil, considering the guy most likely wasn't even gay. Like, what were the chances of that?

Still, to his surprise, the other man just smiles and answers, "Please, I get enough of that from my students-you can just call me Tadashi."

He could?! Fred wasn't sure if this counted as flirting or not, but he figured he was safe enough saying, "Well, in that case, you can just call me Fred."

"Good." Tadashi smiles. "I've never really liked when two adults of the same age are expected to call each other by their formal names, except maybe in front of students or if it's a situation that really calls for it. But this is pretty informal, so why make it all uncomfortable, right?"

"Totally!" Fred agrees. It was nice knowing that he wouldn't have to keep things all fancy and formal in front of Tadashi-having it relaxed would make it much easier to get to know him. Even if there wasn't much of a chance for romance, he still liked the idea of maybe trying to make friends with him. He honestly hadn't had that much luck with making friends, even in college, and most of his coworkers were a good bit older than him. He'd go out for a drink with them sometimes, sure, but even after five years they still saw him as the "young blood"-someone they enjoyed heaping their years of teaching experience on but whose opinions they really didn't give much credence to.

"So, um, I think I'm here because we're supposed to be discussing Hiro and how he's doing in your class?" Tadashi says after a minute, breaking the comfortable silence.

"Oh, right!" Fred flushes slightly. He'd almost completely forgotten why they were here in the first place, and he quickly scrambles for his notes even though he pretty much knew everything that he was going to say.

"Hiro is a very… gifted student," he starts off, wanting to start things out positively. That's a useful technique he'd learned over the years-start out with the good, slip in the negative, and then quickly cushion it with more good and end on a high note.

"His work honestly surpasses most of his peers'," Fred continues. "He doesn't have quite the emotional depth to understand some of the concepts that come up in the literature we've read, although that is to be expected given he is only ten years old. Still, he does seem to have quite a lot of understanding for themes of grief and loss." Hopefully he wasn't being too forward, but this was the teacher's way of gently prying at the lid of what he knew might be a can of worms but he felt he needed to understand in order to best help one of his more promising students.

"That is to be expected," Tadashi sighs, shaking his head slightly. "Especially considering he lost his parents when he was only three."

"They're both deceased?" Fred asks softly, the other man's answer confirming what he had already suspected.

"Yes," Tadashi agrees. "The worst part of it was that Hiro was even in the car at the time of the accident-it was a lot of trauma for someone so young to go through. And then to end up in the system for a year after that…"

"There wasn't any family to take him in?" Fred asks hesitantly, hoping he wasn't getting too personal.

"No, if there was any they either wouldn't or couldn't," Tadashi sighs. "I still consider it a miracle that I adopted him when I did, before things could get any worse. I only wish that I'd been able to do it sooner."

"So that means you adopted him… five years ago?" Fred says after doing the mental math.

"Yes," Tadashi agrees with a nod. "I'd just finished my doctorate and had been awarded my professorship at the university. I figured it was as good a time as any to start a family, before time got away from me. I'd wanted to adopt for a long time-I was raised by my aunt after my own parents died when I was eight, and it left a big impression on me. I wanted to be able to show the kindness and love she so willingly gave me to someone else who needed it."

"That's amazing," Fred breathes, staring at him in slight awe.

"I-It's not really…" Tadashi flushes slightly, something Fred found completely adorable.

"It is!" Fred argues. "I have great respect for anyone who's willing to take a living thing that they aren't directly responsible for into their lives and care for it. Hiro's really lucky to have a dad like you."

"Honestly, I kind of feel like I'm the one who's lucky to have Hiro," Tadashi answers with a warm smile. "He's brought so much joy into my life-I really don't know what I'd do without him." He sighs as he adds, "Sometimes I feel guilty that I don't have anyone helping me raise him-y'know, as a spouse. I mean, my aunt and all of my friends are super helpful and it's like Hiro has this huge extended family, even if none of them are related to him. But sometimes I find myself reading those studies about how it's important for a child to have two parents and everything…"

Fred lets out a slight snort to show what he thought of that. "Look, I'm not saying that in a perfect world that wouldn't be the case, but in a perfect world there wouldn't be death and kids wouldn't be left without parents in the first place! But you are more dedicated to your son than most families with both parents who have tons of money and time to spend on their kids are. You're doing an amazing thing, and I can tell that Hiro loves you insanely much so I wouldn't be worried about it. And if it turns out that he has any rough patches, I know that you'll be there to help him through it!"

"Thanks." Tadashi gives him a grateful smile. "It's actually really encouraging to hear that from someone who isn't in my immediate family or circle of friends. They keep telling me the same thing, but I can't help but feel like they're a little biased, y'know?"

"Yeah, I get that!" Fred agrees.

"It's not like some of them haven't tried to push me out into the dating circuit," Tadashi adds with a wry smile. "I just… it's really awkward at our age, y'know? I was too caught up with my studies in college to even attempt to start a relationship with someone, and by the time I realized that I was already in my mid-twenties and should actually be thinking about settling down, it seemed like all of the decent guys were already taken."

Fred felt his breath catch in his throat. "So, um, by 'guys' you mean… actual guys?" The question gets out before he realized how rude it might sound, and he quickly adds, "Which, y'know, if that's the case, cool! I'm actually gay myself. Not, y'know that I have partner or even romantic prospects. I'm kind of in the same boat you are-only without the benefit of having an adorable kiddo to go home to. All I've got is a pet lizard." And wow, he had just made this a _million_ times more awkward. Way to set the mood, Fred! He was practically throwing himself at a total stranger-albeit a very nice, very handsome stranger-and overall being completely unprofessional. Gah, why did it seem that being a loser was a curse that was going to follow him all of his life?

Then, to his surprise, Tadashi starts laughing. Not in a ridiculing way or even a "I'm extremely uncomfortable right now, can we please change the subject?" sort of way. It was just open and friendly and, oddly enough, it sounded just a tiny bit relieved.

"Well, good to know I'm not the only gay bachelor left in this city," he says with a warm smile.

Wait, Fred wonders, was he saying that in a "We have something in common, let's be friends" way or was he actually hitting on him? Oh gosh, if only the fact that Tadashi was so gorgeous wasn't so distracting and he had more time to figure this out…

As if both realizing just how late it was getting at the same time, they both look at the clock and Tadashi jumps slightly in his seat. "Oh man, it's that late already?" he cries before turning back to Fred and saying apologetically, "I'm so sorry to have to leave, but I promised I'd pick Hiro up from my aunt's by six thirty!" He blushes slightly as he adds, "I'm also sorry I got us so far off track, I feel like I ended up just talking about myself when I was supposed to be here talking to you about Hiro's progress…"

"If it makes you feel any better, I think I actually learned a lot of valuable information about one of my students that will hopefully help me be a better teacher to him," Fred reassures Tadashi before adding hesitantly, "But, you know, if you really wanted a chance to talk more about Hiro and… other things, I'd definitely be available if you want to get a drink sometime!" Okay, so he was pushing his luck here, but this was kind of his last chance for what might be a very long time.

He feels his heart plunge as he sees the slightly uncomfortable look on the other man's face-shit, he had totally misjudged the situation and had probably even ruined any chances of ever even being friends with him-only to be surprised when Tadashi answers, "I actually don't drink… But maybe we could meet for coffee?"

"I'd definitely be down for coffee!" Fred agrees with a grin, his mood instantly improving a thousand fold. "When's good for you?"

"Well…" Tadashi pulls out his phone to consult his calendar. "My aunt's insisting on taking Hiro clothes shopping this Saturday-I've been kind of looking for an excuse to get out of being dragged to the mall and having her try to update my own wardrobe, so maybe this could actually be a really handy excuse if you're free?"

Fred honestly had a stack of papers to grade over the weekend, but if he canceled going out with the other teachers on Saturday night and shifted the rest of his schedule around a little bit, he could manage it. "Sure!" he agrees, trying not to sound too eager. "Do you have a place you usually like to go?"

"Well, usually I would say the cafe that my aunt owns, but I feel we wouldn't get much privacy there," Tadashi admits.

"Hm…" Fred considers the problem before suggesting a different coffee shop that he often frequented on the way to or from school. It wasn't fancy, but it was family owned instead of being an overpriced chain shop.

"It sounds perfect!" Tadashi says with a firm nod and a smile as he stands up.

"It's a date, then," Fred agrees with a grin as he stands up too, only to realize with horror what he'd just said. "N-not that I'm saying it's an actual date! I mean, unless you wanted it to be! Which would be awesome, but that would be really awkward for me to be asking you on a date after a parent-teacher conference and wow I am just making this all the more awkward and should probably shut up-"

He was, yet again, caught off guard when suddenly he finds Tadashi lightly pressing a hand to his mouth to stop him from talking and probably further embarrassing himself. He can barely bring himself to meet the other man's eyes, but when he does, his heart skips a beat when he sees him actually smiling.

"Yes," Tadashi says, seeming slightly amused but also just a little bit excited. "It's a date. And yes, by that, I mean a real date."

"O-okay then!" Fred can't help but find himself grinning like an idiot, although he was too happy to really care. "A date it is, then!"

Tadashi's smile seems to widen just a tiny bit more before he waves and walks out the door.

Fred sinks back down into his chair as soon as he's sure that the other man has actually left. For a moment, he just stares at the inspirational kitten poster on the wall in front of him, feeling complete and total disbelief. Then, as the truth settles in, he punches the air and spins himself around, letting out a victory cry. He had a date with an insanely hot single dad and the guy had seen him acting like a complete and total dork and he didn't care! How amazing was this?!

If he'd been paying attention, he might have seen Tadashi standing out in the hallway, having returned for the sweater he'd accidentally left in the classroom but thinking better of going back in when he saw the adorable teacher's mini celebration. He could just get the sweater back on Saturday. It was worth the wait just having gotten to see that. Hands in his pockets and humming quietly to himself, he heads back out into the school towards the parking lot. If things worked out, this was going to prove to be a very interesting relationship. And honestly? He couldn't wait.


End file.
